Anyone moving photos from an iPhone to a Windows PC knows the problem: the HEIC format, used by Apple phones for years, did not open without extensions. Now the new Windows 11 Photos app handles it on its own, with no extra steps.
Until now, viewing a HEIC file in Windows meant installing the HEIF Image Extensions and, for some files, the HEVC extension too. Both were paid or came from unreliable third-party sources.
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The change concerns the editor of the new app. According to Microsoft, a HEIC image can be edited and saved in its original format, without converting it to JPEG. Microsoft has not said whether the required codecs are bundled in the app or handled at system level, but for the user the result is immediate.
The new Photos app was announced on October 15 with a broad overhaul. The gallery combines photos on the PC, on OneDrive and, with the iCloud for Windows app installed, on iCloud. The editor was rebuilt as a native component on WinUI 3 and launches 25% faster.
For now the feature is available only to Windows Insider users on the latest build. Microsoft plans a wider rollout later this year.
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